Try This Mom's 'Ulam Raffle' Idea For When You Don't Know What To Cook

Ever been in the mall and couldn't decide where to eat? Moms who cook for their families also have the same dilemma, only it's more work because they have to prep and cook it themselves.

Mom of three Beng Onacle, from Rizal, prefers to ask her kids, ages 11, 8, and 5, what they want to eat so she can prepare and cook it for them. It's a labor of love. But on the night of February 5, her kids couldn't decide on what they want. It happens.

"Yung gabi po na yun, wala po kami maisip na iluluto," Beng told Smartparenting.com.ph via Facebook Messenger. To remedy the situation, she thought of a brilliant idea for when she and her family blanks out of meal ideas: an ulam raffle!

It's simple enough, as she had written on her Facebook post: Write down the dishes your kids love to eat -- and that you can cook -- on strips of paper and fold it individually, as you would when you have a raffle and place it in a container. Then, have one of your kids to pick one. And viola! The ulam has been decided for you.

For their first ulam raffle, the mom of three included tortang talong, tinola, adobong baboy, pritong isda, shanghai, among others, as possible dinner options even though she doesn't stock a lot of ingreadients at home. "Maganda kasi siyempre fresh," she explained, as she mostly stays at home.

When their ulam raffle was ready, Beng asked her 5-year-old son to pick one folded piece of paper from the lot. "Saktong pritong itlog ang nabunot," she shared. Good thing she always has eggs at home because of her customized cake business.

To avoid picking a dish that she wouldn't be able to cook due to missing ingredients, Beng decided to tweak their ulam raffle. "Bale sa gabi, bubunot ang mga anak ko, then kinabuksan, yung ipapamalengke ko lunch hanggang dinner na. Isang putahe lang para tipid," she explained.

The ulam raffle has worked for Beng's family on many occasions. "Marami na ako nabunot na niluto ko na, like fried chicken at fried fish," Beng shared. "Sa kagustuhan kong masunod yung mga nabubunot ko na ulam na puro fried, ayon nagtiyaga kami sa walang sabaw," she quipped.

Thankfully, Beng didn't need to use their ulam raffle every day. But it's a great idea that apparently many moms or households needed. Her post has been shared a lot on social media and it's getting a lot of positive reactions. A lot of netizens are excited to try it, too!

For more idea on what to cook for your kids, click here.